Secret-science bill inches a step closer to US law

SHHHH… A bill passed in the House of Representatives in Washington DC last week will either bust open the cosy cartel of science policy-makers at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), or dash government efforts to keep us safe from polluters – depending on your view.

The Secret Science Reform Act, pushed through by the Republicans and supported by industry groups, would prevent the EPA from issuing regulations on the basis of information that has not been made public – “secret science”. But opponents say this would effectively dilute the EPA’s power by limiting the research it can draw on.

“The US Congress is carrying out a sneak attack on science,” says Andrew Rosenberg, of the Union of Concerned Scientists in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “The science community should be up in arms about these actions – but so should anyone who cares about using the best science to make good public policy.”

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The bill will need President Obama’s approval, though. His office said earlier this month that he would be advised to veto it because the bill could “impede EPA’s reliance on the best available science”.